Dear SKS Families,

Welcome to the March Blog! Lent is here and each morning we are saying a special Lenten Prayer.  It is a holy season for Catholics as we find ways to be selfless, rather than selfish.   The crocuses have popped up in my backyard, so I hope this is a sign of Spring coming soon. We have had enough of two hour delays for snow and ice already!

Please keep in your prayers the Evans, Scott, and Leary families who have lost loved ones this past winter.

Irish Dance  

Congratulations to our Irish Dancers who performed so well at the Philadelphia St. Patrick’s Day parade. If you missed the Fox29 news clip with  Kathy Orr it was fantastic, click here for the Fox 29 video. Many thanks to Jeanna Ventura, Kerri Manion, and Jessie DiLucia for all their efforts and patience in working with our dancers. Some of the dancers also performed for the SKS Aberdeen Club (our senior citizens) this week. The seniors loved seeing our students perform.

Trivia Night

SKS Trivia Night was a huge hit.  Congrats to our winners  Threat Level Midnight ( for you fans of The Office), who took home the trophy.  Many thanks to Gina O’Sullivan and Carolyn Carson  for all their efforts in organizing the night.

Exciting School News

 I get asked by prospective parents I meet with, “Why SKS ?” I‘ll tell them about the many exciting things I see here at school daily. Perhaps our current school families need to be reminded as well. Here are two examples of “Why SKS?”:

  • This week, I got my first glance at our new Google Expedition Virtual Reality Cart complete with 30 VR Viewers/Goggles. The teachers are being trained this week on how to use them and that will continue on April 23rd, the Tuesday after Easter, which is a teacher in-service day (no school.) The cost of this cart, slightly under $12,000, was completely covered by a grant we received from our partnership with the good people at the Uncommon Individual Foundation who continue to mentor our middle school grades in 6th to 8th in technology.
    As part of this VR/AR package, we have over 900 expeditions ready for our kids to experience, every subject area has something relevant on the system  Click here for information about Google Expeditions available to educators today, and click here for the specific list of virtual adventures! It’s unbelievable the places and things we can go!
  • Another exciting piece of news is that our Class of 2019, which just finished their successful day Business Day venture in February, will stretch their entrepreneurial skills even further over the next several weeks. They will do this with the help of their teachers, Mr.  David Heacock, Mrs. Jackie Sevag and SKS parent, Justin Goldman (father of 1st grader Declan).  Justin is an entrepreneur and has several startup companies of his own. The students will be working in groups and are responsible for creating their own startup company.  Simply speaking, think Shark Tank comes to SKS.  Justin has been here a few times already to get the ball rolling and he will continue to visit in the weeks to come to help our 8th grade think like entrepreneurs and work with their ideas.  This is one of many exciting things that are happening in our school.

I am proud of our school across the board in every grade with their creative programs:

  •  The 4th Grade Wax Museum last month
  •  Dinosaur Day in the 3rd grade was visited by parent Mrs. Barbara Riley, who is a paleontologist. She brought in fossils and talked to our  students about her passion.
  •   Our Reading Circle program in the primary grades has over thirty parent/grandparent volunteers
  •   Our Reading Olympics Team in the middle grades, run by teachers Alexa Stefan and Jill  D’Agostino, is priming up for their upcoming  competition on April 2nd.
  •  After-school opportunities such as our Forensics, Science Club, Coding Club, Art Club and Craft Club for our students are important in the life of our school.

Every day, in every grade, I get to visit the classrooms and see the efforts of our teachers and students. Our students by and large are happy here, enjoy school, and are engaged and challenged by our teachers.

                                                                      

Home and School Board

I want to thank our Home and School Board, starting with our president, Rebecca Roe, who has done a wonderful job the last two years running our Home and School in an organized, proficient, and caring fashion.  Thanks to Lee Ann Leary for connecting with Holcomb Behavioral and lining up our speakers for the Vaping Presentation.  Our Home and School does a wonderful job of caring for our school.  As some board member’s terms are up, there will be a few changes for next year which will be announced soon.

Board of Limited Jurisdiction for SKS

 To assist Msgr. Brouwers and myself in the daily operations of running the business of a school, we are in the process of training some constituents of SKS to be a part of a 12 -15 member Board of Limited Jurisdiction.  This board will consist of SKS alumni, past parents, as well as a few current parents. Next Wednesday evening we will have the second two hour training session for the board. From there, we still have work to do to get the board up and running. After this initial board is in place, they will be charged with forming committees in the following areas: Finances, Facilities, Enrollment and Marketing, Development, and Board/Committee Recruitment. Both Msgr. Brouwers and I are excited about working with this Board to help keep our school strong for many years to come.

Thank You Parents                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

I want to thank you for partnering with us each day for the good of your children. This is a happy place where learning takes place and a big reason why that happens is the relationship that is forged between you, the teachers and me. I witnessed that yesterday at the Reconciliation Breakfast for the 2nd grade where so many parents were able to be with their children.  Our students according to one priest were “so well prepared  and that doesn’t always happen…”  Thank  goes to  Sr. Mary Elizabeth, Kim Pepper, and teachers,Mary De Petris and Maryanne Fitzpatrick, and  to you , our parents.  Your children benefit as a result of our united efforts.  I remain always grateful to all of you.

                                                                             

Upcoming Dates

  • Friday, March 15 Irish Dance Recital in Parish Center at 7 PMand SKS Dance from 7 to 9:30 for grades 6,7 & 8 in cafeteria
  • Monday, March 18 begins the 3rd trimester
  • Thursday, March 21starts Terra Nova standardized testing for grades 3-8. They take the In View testing which is a cognitive test of ability (similar to an IQ test.) Testing runs each day until March 29th.
  • Friday, March 22 is a 5th & 6th grade Fun Night in the gym
  • Saturday, March 23 is the Sweetheart Dance
  • Monday to Friday mornings, March 25 -29. KG – 8th take Terra Nova test
  • Tuesday, March Reports Cards for 2nd Trimester distributed to students
  • Sunday, March 31st is Family Fun Fest – SKS Goes West 3 to 6 pm. Get your cowboy hat, flannel shirt and boots ready. Join us for Deke’s Barbeque, square dancing, corn hole and a good ole time.

 

Take care,

Bud